1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the area of drumhead construction and, more particularly, to a head for a drum that includes a synthetic plastic sheet material, a fabric material laminated thereto and an epoxy compound applied to seal and impregnate the fabric material and encapsulate the individual randomly orientated fibers therein to preclude delamination.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Drumheads of various types are well known in the prior art. Hartry, U.S. Pat. No. 4,308,782 contains an informative discussion in this area.
The objective of Hartry is to provide a laminated head comprised of bonded sheets of synthetic fabric and plastic materials. The plastic sheet material remains the primary tension load carrier while the fabric material acts to distribute the load. This combination reduces the tendency of the plastic sheet material to dent as well as dampen undesirable overtones, and provides an improved brush surface. The synthetic fabric material preferred by Hartry includes the category of spunbonded olefins, such as polyethylene. In the prior art, polyethylene fibers have usually been the material of choice for drumhead construction. The material is extremely versatile for use in a wide variety of applications and, due to its strength, light weight, smooth finish and close simulation to an actual animal skin, has been adapted for use in the manufacture of drumheads and similar products. However, polyethylene has a serious drawback in its tendency to delaminate when subjected to the constant pounding of a drumstick or the sweeping motion of a brush. Thus, for example, as the brush sweeps the surface of the head, the individual fiber components in the polyethylene tend to come apart and separate forming elevated hairlike filaments in which the wire or nylon bristles of the drum brush become entangled.
As a solution to this problem, Remo, U.S. Pat. No. 5,091,248, provides an improved drumhead construction involving a laminate of a synthetic fabric material comprised of polyester and a synthetic plastic sheet material bonded together. The drumhead is coated by a vinylidene chloride copolymer, which acts to seal the head surface and impregnate the fabric sufficiently to preclude delamination of the randomly orientated fibers in the polyester upper layer. Although one major problem appeared to be resolved with the substitution of the polyester fabric material in place of the polethylene and the use of the vinylidene chloride coating, other problems seemed to persist. With the exception of the delamination tendency, polyethylene is still generally recognized as a more durable material than polyester with a much greater life span. Polyethylene also has superior tonal and tactile characteristics compared to polyester providing a greater warmth of sound and a more authentic or natural animal skin appearance. The Remo drumhead with the polyester upper layer, and despite the improvement, is still subject to a certain degree of delamination when the head is exposed to rain as so often occurs when the head is used with a drum carried in a marching band. Thus, even the Remo device is not able to fully address and solve the problems in the prior art that continue to plague these drumheads.
The present invention solves the foregoing problems in the prior art by utilizing a combination of elements, including a laminate of a polyethylene fabric material and a synthetic plastic sheet material, and an epoxy resin coating. The epoxy seals the surface of the fabric material, acts to impregnate the layers of the randomly nonorientated fibers in the polyethylene and fully encapsulates each of the individual fibers eventually mixing with the adhesive contained between the sheet materials to enhance the strength of the bond between them. These combined elements, which were previously unknown and unexplored in the drumhead technology, when working in concert, succeed in improving both the integrity of the laminated drumhead, by precluding delamination under even the most adverse weather conditions, and the tonal, tactile and visual characteristics of the head.